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The Macedonian Constitutional Court has abolished the "Balancer", a tool designed to guarantee access to public administration based on ethnic identity, now considered outdated, discriminatory and susceptible to abuse
In October 2024, the Constitutional Court of North Macedonia decided to abolish the administrative tool called "Balancer", which was used to manage employment in the public administration based on ethnicity, in order to have an appropriate and fair representation of ethnic communities.
This has put the country in a position of a new challenge when it comes to public administration, and the government has announced a Law on Fair Representation as a replacement. The abolition has also sparked controversy between the government and the opposition.
A controversial instrument
The Balancer has been in use since the period 2015/2016 to help ensure appropriate and fair representation of ethnic minorities, i.e. Albanians, Roma and Turks, in employment in the administration, but it has often been the target of criticism and allegations of abuses in the public.
An adequate and equitable representation of ethnic communities in employment in the administration was one of the pillars of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, signed in 2001 to end the armed conflict between the government and Albanian guerrilla.
Despite the good intentions, however, there were multiple examples of abuse, like when ethnic Macedonians presented themselves as Albanians in job applications and, vice versa, ethnic Albanians claimed to be Macedonians just to get the job. Members of other ethnic communities also used this “possibility”.
The Constitutional Court explained that the fair representation enshrined in the Constitution is indisputable, but the same Constitution guarantees the freedom of expression of national affiliation and equal conditions for access to any job, as well as the prohibition of discrimination on any grounds.
A matter of equity
President of the Constitutional Court Darko Kostadinoski explained that, for example, a Vlach cannot apply for a job vacancy where a Turk is sought, although as a citizen, a Vlach is guaranteed the right to apply for a job in the state administration and it is said that every job is available under the same conditions.
The State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (SCPC) reacted to the inadequacy and dysfunctionality of the Balancer in 2022, publishing the example of a citizen who was a candidate for five jobs for which he applied under three different nationalities. He declared himself as required in the job advertisement, first as a Roma, then a Turk, then a Macedonian. The State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption then filed an initiative with the Constitutional Court to review the decision.
The most critical reaction to the abolition of the Balancer came from the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), one of the main ethnic Albanian parties. DUI was in power in the periods 2002-2006 and 2008-2024 and was among the main supporters of the introduction of the Balancer. According to the party, the decision to abolish it is “shocking” as well as a “heavy blow” to the Constitution, to the Ohrid Framework Agreement and to multi-ethnic stability of the country.
The ruling parties asked DUI to be constructive and reminded the party that it had also agreed on the need to abolish the Balancer. The media in Macedonia reported that when DUI was in power, together with its partners in the government, it developed the Public Administration Reform Strategy 2023-2030 with an Action Plan 2023-2026.
An aged instrument
“This government act from July 2023 was adopted during the government of SDSM and DUI. At page 47, it states that ‘the tool called ‘Balancer’ - which in practice causes numerous abuses- is to be overcome’", Deutsche Welle reported in Macedonian.
In its 2023 report on the progress of North Macedonia in the area of public administration, during the screening for cluster 1 "Fundamental Values", the European Commission stated that the Balancer "no longer meets its objectives while the formula does not reflect the census data on the population living in the country".
According to the latest Report from the Register of Public Sector Employees for 2022, which was maintained by the then Ministry of Information Society and Administration, on December 31, 2022, 71.36% of employees in the public sector were Macedonians; 21.60% Albanians; 2.42% Turks; 1.49% Roma; 1.40% Serbs; 0.74% were others, i.e. did not declare; 0.52% were Bosniaks and 0.48% Vlachs.
According to the 2021 census, 58.44% of the population declared themselves as Macedonians, 24.30% as Albanians, 3.86% as Turks, 2.53% as Roma, 0.47% as Vlachs, 1.30% as Serbs and 0.87% as Bosniaks, etc.
Although it has a population of around 1.8 million, North Macedonia has over 130,000 employees in almost 1,500 state institutions, and this sector in general is a target of public criticism due to the high number of employees.
Waiting for a general reform
Another challenge for the new government is the general reform of the administration, which has not been implemented so far. The Law on High-Level Management Service, which foresees for the appointment directors and managers the administration to be entrusted to experts, has not been adopted yet.
It is believed that between 150 and 200 of the highest management positions in state administrations, bureaus, institutes, inspectorates, public enterprises and agencies are regularly part of the political agreement between the parties that decide to form a coalition to form a government.
The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) reported that the law had already been prepared by the previous parliamentary composition, but there was no political will to vote on it. The parties do not have this law in their election programmes, nor in the government’s priorities.
Minister of Administration Goran Minchev told BIRN that the plan is to adopt the law by the end of 2025, possibly even earlier.
The European Commission reminded of the delay in this draft law in its latest report on the progress on the path to the EU.
